New Azerbaijan criticizes Erdoğan adviser over hijab ban

The ruling party of Azerbaijan, New Azerbaijan (YAP), criticized Oktay Sarali, adviser to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The reason for the criticism is his statement against the ban on hijabs in schools. The party called on Turkey and its ruling party to respect Azerbaijan's internal affairs.

Sarali made the statement on Monday, October 12. Azerbaijani citizens have been protesting the ban on wearing hijabs in schools for several days already. In a post published on X, Sarali called unacceptable the fact that students who wear hijabs have been barred from attending classes in Azerbaijan.

"How can it be morally or legally justified to turn a student away from the school gate only because her head is covered for religious reasons? The hijab is not an obstacle – it is a requirement of faith! The right to education must not be sacrificed to ideological imposition! We expect Azerbaijan to correct this mistake as soon as possible. Instead of creating obstacles on young people's path to the future, we should help them move forward. In today's era, we must never allow such an approach to take hold", writes Sarali.

On October 13, New Azerbaijan stated that some Turkish media and social network platforms, including sources supportive of the government, are spreading false and biased information about Azerbaijan. The party condemned what it called an "information campaign directed against Azerbaijan". According to it, expressing its position became "necessary" after Sarali, in his capacity as a "person with the status of Erdoğan's chief adviser", and other deputies of Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party "joined such a campaign".

The party reportedly linked the criticism by Turkey of Sarali's remarks on dress codes to criticism of Azerbaijan's "Islamophobia" and its relations with Israel. In the statement, the party rejected criticism of Azerbaijan's relations with Israel. It stressed that Baku supports Palestinian statehood on the basis of the "two-state principle", under which East Jerusalem should be the capital of a Palestinian state. According to the party, Azerbaijan also provides financial and humanitarian assistance to Palestinians.

The party said that Azerbaijan's relations with the Islamic world are "based not on political expediency, but on the principles of mutual respect, equality and solidarity". "Our country's contribution to strengthening Islamic solidarity is highly valued by Muslim states", the statement says.

This is reportedly an indirect response to Erdoğan's speech at the UN General Assembly in September. At that time, the Turkish president criticized restrictions on wearing hijabs in schools and called them an "attack on the most fundamental rights of women". He also linked the issue to "Islamophobia". Erdoğan did not name Azerbaijan, although many perceived his statements as a message directed at Baku.

New Azerbaijan accused Erdoğan's adviser and Turkish deputies of "making populist and irresponsible statements without considering the substance of the issue". "Such statements contradict the spirit of the fraternal relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey and may contribute to creating artificial tension in society", the party said, adding that the state treats all religions equally.

The party justified the hijab ban policy by Azerbaijan's secular policy, noting that the principle of secularism "is also enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey".

"The New Azerbaijan Party believes that representatives of the Justice and Development Party, especially holders of high state positions, should show political responsibility in their statements and respect the sovereignty, constitutional order and internal affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan", the party's statement says.